Method and apparatus for adjusting vertical elevator guide rail



1967 B. SIDLER v 3,335,635

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADJUSTING VERTICAL ELEVATOR GUIDE RAIL- Filed March 25, 1965 4 Sheets-$heet 1 FIG]. $51

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FIG. 2.

Aug. 15, 1967 B. SIDLER 3,335,635

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADJUSTING VERTICAL ELEVATOR GUIDE RAIL Filed March 25, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 www Aug. 15, 1967 B. SIDLER 3,335,635

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADJUSTING VERTICAL ELEVATOR GUIDE RAIL Filed March 25, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 1967 B. SIDLER 3,335,635

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADJUSTING VERTICAL ELEVATOR GUIDE RAIL Filed March 25, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. 6.

FIG. 7.

5.7 'lllllllllllll 'lllllll 'I'I'II'I'I'P F/w. F1670.

United States. Patent 3,335,635 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADJUSTING VERTICAL ELEVATOR GUIDE RAIL Bruno Sidler, Breitwiesstrasse 8, Langnau am Albis, Switzerland Filed Mar. 25, 1963, Ser. No. 267,684 2 Claims. (Cl. 8814) The present invention concerns a method of adjusting elevator guide rails 0n assembly, which rails have an end face and two lateral guide surfaces at right angles thereto. The invention also concerns an adjusting device for carrying out this method.

The running characteristics of elevatorsmore especially those adapted to operate at a high speed-are substantially dependent upon accurate assembly and alignment of the guide rails; thus, e.g. in the case of modern express elevators accuracies of some tenths of millimetres are necessary to ensure smooth running of the cabins.

In hitherto known methods of assembly of elevator rails, the latter are aligned by measuring the distance to a plumb line which is accurately measured relative to the guide rails, and also by means of aligning templates; in this case however accuracies of the order of millimetres are the best obtainable.

According to the present invention assembly accuracies required by modern installations are obtained on adjusting the guide rails of the kind initially described by the fact that the desired plane of the end face guide surface of the rail is determined by two plumb lines, suspended so as to be perpendicular to the ground, one of them being extended at a predetermined distance from the plane of symmetry of the guide rail disposed in the desired position, whereupon the guide rail is adjusted by sighting to such an extent until its end face guide surface is disposed in the desired perpendicular plane and the plane of symmetry is disposed at a predetermined distance from the prepositioned one of the plumb lines.

The adjusting device in accordance with the invention for carrying out this method contains a sighting device adapted to be supported against two rail guide surfaces at right angles to one another, and also plumb wires stretched perpendicularly over the length of the shaft, the plane of the wires determining the position of the end face guide surface, and of which one determining the plane of symmetry of the guide rail in the desired position, and the sighting device having members for sighting both wires or one thereof in both directions provided, assuming a common right angle position. v

The sighting apparatus used in this adjusting device expediently contains an optical system and also at least one reticle, whereby it is possible for images of the wires to be projected and aligned on the lines of the reticle corresponding to a definite direction of observation.

In a preferred embodiment of the sighting apparatus the optical system and the reticle are each accommodated in a tube, and are arranged at right angles to one another. The optical system in this case preferably contains three lenses, two of which are arranged axially parallel at the ends of the tube and the third arranged normally thereto, so that one of the wires stretched perpendicularly may be observed from two directions at right angles to one another.

The invention will be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevation of a mounted guide rail with two wires marking its desired position;

FIG. 2 is a plan corresponding to FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are plans on an enlarged scale as compared with FIGS. 1 and 2 showing two alternatives of the sighting device; and

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FIGS. 5 to 10 reticle diagrams of the sighting device in accordance with FIG. 4.

In FIGS. 1 and 2 the numeral 1 designates a guide rail, which has two parallel guide surfaces 1.1, 1.2 and a guide surface 1.3 extending at right angles to these surfaces. The guide rail is fixed to the shaft wall 3 by means of fastening elements 2 arranged in spaced intervals over its entire length. Each fastening element 2 consists of a support plate 2.1, two threaded bolts 2.2 cemented into the shaft wall each having two nuts 2.3 and two claws 2.4 for fixing the guide rail 1 on the support plate 2.1. The numeral 4 designates the vertical plane of symmetry. Furthermore two plumb wires 5 and 6 are stretched perpendicularly by means of weights 7 and 8. The diameter of the wires may, for example, amount to 0.5 mm. A wire suspension 9 is provided for fixing the wires, and in this case e.g. is hammer-tightened between the shaft wall 3 and the opposite shaft wall, not shown herein. The wires 5, 6 are fixed in accurately measured points 10, 11 of the wire suspension 9. A wire guide 9.1 hammer-tightened at the lower end of the shaft serves to guide the said wires 5 and 6. The wire suspension 9 and the wire guide 9.1 are so arranged that the two wires 5 and 6 assume a position left and right of the guide rail in accurate spaced distance from the plane of symmetry 4. Furthermore the Wires 5 and 6 are disposed on a plane 12 which corresponds to the desired perpendicular position of the guide surface 1.3.

FIG. 3 shows the fundamental construction of a sighting apparatus 13 suitable for mounting the guide rail 1 in the desired position marked by the wires 5 and 6. The device has a base plate 13.1 on which two sighting systems 13.2 and 13.3 are arranged at right angles relative to one another. Each of the sighting systems 13.2, 13.3 has a sight aperture 13.21 or 13.31 and a front sight 13.22 or 13.32, for defining the sight bearings or straight lines 13.23, 13.33 of the two sighting systems. The sight bearing 13.23 is disposed in the plane determined by the locating surface 13.11 and the sight bearing 13.33 parallel to the locating surface 13.12. The distance of the sight bearings 13.33 from the locating surface 13.12 is smaller by half the width of the crosspiece than the distance situated between the plane of symmetry 4 and the wire 6.

On assembly the sighting device 13 is set against the guide rail 1, which was first of all roughly erected, on the guide surfaces 1.1, 1.3 each level with the fastening elements 2, and each time the guide rail 1 adjusted by means of the fastening elements 2 concerned until the wires 5 and 6 are in line with the sight bearings 13.23 and wire 6 in the sight bearing 13.33. As an alternative, the sighting device 13 may have a further sighting system, the sight bearing of which coincides with the sight bearings 13.23 and mounted on the right hand side of the wire 6 on an extension of the base plate 13.1.

A further construction of the sighting device is evident from FIG. 4. The guide rail to be caused to assume the correct position is again designated by 1. 5 and 6 are the wires marking the correct position of the guide rail 1.

The sighting device 14 has a housing 15, which is composed of two tubes 15.1 disposed mutually at right angles to one another. The housing 15 moreover has locating surfaces 15.3, 15.4 disposed at right angles to one another and is so clamped by means of a clamping jaw 17 adapted to be actuated by a lever 16 against the guide rail 1 that the locating surface 15.3 assumes a position on the guide surface 1.1 and the stop surface 15.4 on the guide surface 1.3. Each of the tubes 15.1 and 15.2 has an optical system accommodated therein, by means of which an image of each wire 5 and 6 may be projected onto a reticle 18. The reticle 18 is observed by means of an eyepiece 19. The optical system comprises the lenses 20, 21,

22, the prisms 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 and the lenses 28. The prism 25 has a cover 25.1 and may be folded over into the position shown in broken lines by means of a changeover knob, not shown. The lens 20, 21 and the prisms 23, 25, 27 are disposed on the underside and the lens 22 and also the prisms 24, 26 on the upper side of a horizontal plane imagined to divide the lenses 28 and the reticle 18 into two halves.

The reticle 18, as evident from FIGS. 5 to 10, is divided by way of a horizontal line 18.1 into an upper and a lower half. The image of the wire 5 via the lense 22, the prisms 26 and 24 and the lenses 28 owing to the optical reversal is projected onto the lower half of the reticle 18. The image of the wire 6, in the illustrated position of the lens 25 via the prism 21, the prisms 25, 23 and the lenses 28 gets into the position shown in broken lines of the prism 25 via the magnifying lens 20, the prisms 27, 23 and the lenses 28 onto the upper half of the reticle 18.

The horizontal line 18.1 of the reticle 18 is provided with vertical lines 18.2, the distance between two such vertical lines 18.3 in reality signifying half a millimetre. 18.3 are markings with which the images of the wires 5 and 6 have to correspond, when the guide rail 1 assumes the correct position. The sides at the left and right of the marking 18.3 which have to correspond with one another in the upper and lower half of the reticle 18 are designated by or In FIGS. 5 to 10 are shown the images 5.1 or 6.1 of the wires 5 and 6 projected onto the reticle 18 with the different instances of deviation of the guide rail 1 from its desired position.

When assembling the first roughly erected guide rail 1, the sighting device 14 is clamped into position at the given level of the fastening elements 2, and the images 5.1 or 6.1 of the wires 5 and 6 projected onto the retieye-pieces 19 on the reticle 18. The guide rail is adjusted by means of the appropriate fastening element 2 until the images 5.1, 6.1 of both wires 5, 6 are accurately aligned with the corresponding markings 18.3 on the reticle 18, namely in both positions of the prism 25. The adjusting work is facilitated by the fact that the position of the images 5.1, 6.1 relative to the markings 18.3 on the reticle 18 permits the manner and extent of deviation to be concluded.

In the illustrated position of the prism 25 the guide rail 1 is tested for deviation relative to the wire plane 12 of the wires and for twisting. If, e.g. the guide rail 1 assumes a relative position too far in front of the wire plane 12 by 2.0 mm., then the wire images 5.1, 6.1 would be seen on the line plate 18 as shown in FIG. 5; if the guide rail 1 is too far to the rear by 2.5 mm., then they are seen as shown in FIG. 6. If the image of the wires 5.6 appears as shown in FIG. 7, then it may be concluded from this that the guide rail 1 is only twisted, whilst from FIG. 8 the conclusion may be drawn that the guide rail 1 is twisted and in addition has a deviation relative to the wire plane 12. If the prism 25 assumes the position shown in broken lines, then the deviation of the guide rail 1 relative to the plane of symmetry 4 may be read on the upper half of the reticle 18. The image 5.1 of the wire 5 on the lower half of the reticle 18 thus no longer has any attention paid thereto. FIG. 9 shows the image appearing on the reticle 18 when the guide rail 1 is too far to the left by 2.0 mm. and FIG. 10 when it is too far to the right by 1.5 mm. of the guide plane 4, if it assumes the desired position relative to the plane 12 of the wires.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for use in adjusting a vertical elevator guide rail having an end face and a pair of lateral guide surfaces at right angles thereto, said guide rail having a vertical plane of symmetry parallel to said guide surfaces, and being suspended by means which provide for the plane of said end face and for said plane of symmetry being adjusted, a pair of plum lines suspended with respect to said guide rail so as to define the desired plane of said end face, at least one of said plumb lines being positioned at a predetermined distance from said plane of symmetry in the desired plane of said end face, and an optical sighting device comprising at least two locating faces to contact said end face and at least one of said guide faces, respectively, and viewing means positioned with respect to said locating faces to provide a view of at least one plumb line in the plane of said end face and one plumb line in the direction of said plane of symmetry at said predetermined distance therefrom.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the sighting device comprises a housing, means for locating said housing on said elevator guide rail, said housing having multiple lens means therein for optically sighting at least one of said plumb lines and forming images thereof from at least two directions at right angles to each other, means arranged to deviate said images along a common optical path reticle means for receiving the images of said plum lines to indicate deviation from adjustment of elevator guide rail.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 881,127 3/1908 Jacob 882.6 1,140,587 5/1915 Fingado 88-2.2 1,451,302 4/ 1923 Mihalyi 88-22 2,565,382 8/1951 Le Maire 1047 3,012,325 12/1961 Elam 3346.2 3,192,631 7/1965 Goguen et al 88l4 X FOREIGN PATENTS 828,009 1/ 1952 Germany.

JEWELL H. PEDERSEN, Primary Examiner.

D. S. STEVENS, F. SHOON, A. A. KASHINSKI,

Assistant Examiners. 

1. APPARATUS FOR USE IN ADJUSTING A VERTICAL ELEVATOR GUIDE RAIL HAVING AN END FACE AND A PAIR OF LATERAL GUIDE SURFACES AT RIGHT ANGLES THERETO, SAID GUIDE RAIL HAVING A VERTICAL PLANE OF SYMMETRY PARALLEL TO SAID GUIDE SURFACES, AND BEING SUSPENDED BY MEANS WHICH PROVIDE FOR THE PLANE OF SAID END FACE AND FOIR SAID PLANE OF SYMMETRY BEING ADJUSTED, A PAIR OF PLUM LINES SUSPENDED WITH RESPECT TO SAID GUIDE RAIL SO AS TO DEFINE THE DESIRED PLANE OF SAID END FACE, AT LEAST ONE OF SAID PLUMB LINES BEING POSITIONED AT A PREDETERMINED DISTANCE FROM SAID PLANE OF SYMMETRY IN THE DESIRED PLANE OF SAID END FACE, AND AN OPTICAL SIGHTING DEVICE COMPRISING AT LEAST TWO LOCATING FACES TO CONTACT SAID END FACE AND AT LEAST ONE OF SAID GUIDE FACES, RESPECTIVELY, AND VIEWING MEANS POSITIONED WITH RESPECT TO SAID LOCATING FACES TO PROVIDE A VIEW OF AT LEAST ONE PLUMB LINE IN THE PLANE OF SAID END FACE AND ONE PLUMB LINE IN THE DIRECTION OF SAID PLANE OF SYMMETRY AT SAID PREDETERMINED DISTANCE THEREFROM. 